View Full Version : Autopsy on ginseng hunter in Park
Since people were asking about it in another thread---i created this new thread just for this...
here's what the Park sent down today...
Great Smoky Mountains Media Update
Release Date: February 4, 2019
Autopsy Complete for Man Found in Park in September 2018
Great Smoky Mountains National Park (https://whiteblaze.net/forum/x-apple-data-detectors://4) officials recently received the autopsy report from the Knox County Regional Forensic Center detailing that William Lee Hill, Jr. died of accidental methamphetamine intoxication. Hill, age 30, of Louisville, TN was found off-trail in the park on Sunday, September 9, 2018, near Rich Mountain Road, approximately two miles north of Cades Cove.
According to the report, "An autopsy revealed extensive postmortem animal predation, but no findings of antemortem/perimortem trauma (i.e. Mr. Hill was not attacked by a bear)."
At the time of discovery, searchers encountered a bear feeding on Hill’s body. Without knowing the definitive cause of death, the next day officials made the decision to euthanize the bear in the interest of public safety after consultation with wildlife professionals and further understanding of the bear’s aggressive behavior. The road leading into the area remained closed to the public while the bear was located and euthanized a few days later.
The park is home to an estimated 1,500 bears. Very few bears exhibit aggressive behavior towards humans. Wildlife biologists and park rangers work hard to prevent bears from becoming food-conditioned or habituated to high-use areas. Out of an abundance of caution for the park's 11 million park visitors, park staff implement aversive-conditioning techniques and, on rare occasions, euthanize individual bears that pose a threat to visitor safety.
-NPS-
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It doesn't say it in what I posted above but the report states that drugs and syringes were found near the body...
and he had a history of using meth intravenously.....
I was kind of expecting to hear something like this....
Meth use and Appalachian Mt range ginseng hunting? Why am I not surprised. Ever see some of those characters on Appalachian Outlaws? Uhhh, I thought it was illegal to gather ginseng in GSMNP? If so this guy was a criminal in several incidences,...illegal poaching of plants and drug user on NP property.
Hope the bears aren't eating the methy parts. That's just what we don't need...Jonesying meth bears.
Thanks for the follow up. It's good to see this chapter coming to a close.
trailmercury
02-04-2019, 16:07
accidental methamphetamine intoxication.
Methamphetamine "intoxication" was intentional; "overdose" was accidental
intoxication was presumably his desired effect, overdose and death were the accidental part.
Methamphetamine "intoxication" was intentional; "overdose" was accidental
intoxication was presumably his desired effect, overdose and death were the accidental part.
Maybe he was having an unsuccessful illegal "sing" hunting day and decided to intentionally end it all. Not enough stakes in the freezer.
Maybe he was having an unsuccessful illegal "sing" hunting day and decided to intentionally end it all. Not enough stakes in the freezer.
That is one theory.....
or he got lost and figured to end it all thinking he would never come outta the woods....
also---keep in mind---his partner committed suicide a few days after this incident...
so we will never know the exact reasoning......
trailmercury
02-04-2019, 17:34
his poaching partner or his significant other?
his poaching partner or his significant other?
Poaching partner....
sorry, should have made that clear.....
from what we had heard---partner (and apparently long time friend) was distraught during the search and finding of his friend......and a few days later, committed suicide....
Rex Clifton
02-04-2019, 17:46
So a bear partially ate a meth-head. I wonder if he was chain smoking and babbling nonsense when they found him?
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So a bear partially ate a meth-head. I wonder if he was chain smoking and babbling nonsense when they found him?
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no.....
he was dead......
as for the bear----it was shot and killed afterwards.....
not sure if the sex of the bear was ever released.....
Emerson Bigills
02-04-2019, 19:59
So... I think that still means only one person has been killed by a bear in the GSMNP since it's inception. Quite a record considering the number of visitors to that park, the high number of black bears and the almost regular mis-handling of food by visitors, campers and hikers in the park. I think it also should be a credit to the rangers and folks that manage the wildlife in the park. I suspect the ratio of bear to human deaths is a staggering number, so that is a sad conclusion.
Sarcasm the elf
02-04-2019, 20:42
So a bear partially ate a meth-head. I wonder if he was chain smoking and babbling nonsense when they found him?
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Allow me to use this as a segue to introduce the famous Cocaine Bear a.k.a. Pablo Escobear:
https://kyforky.com/blogs/journal/cocaine-bear
So... I think that still means only one person has been killed by a bear in the GSMNP since it's inception. Quite a record considering the number of visitors to that park, the high number of black bears and the almost regular mis-handling of food by visitors, campers and hikers in the park. I think it also should be a credit to the rangers and folks that manage the wildlife in the park. I suspect the ratio of bear to human deaths is a staggering number, so that is a sad conclusion.
That is correct......
back in 2000---Glenda Bradley was killed by a bear along little river trail in the elkmont section of the Park...
she was killed on a Sunday---I had seen the same trio on the previous Friday...
i also went to the press conference the Park held on Monday....
and in 2006---there was a 6 year old girl who was killed in the Cherokee national forest here in Tennessee....
there have been a few other incidents in the Park---most notoriously the guy at Spence field and the teenager on Hazel creek....
and every year there are also other minor Bear incidents ---such as someone getting a sprained ankle due to running away from a bear after it might have bluffed charged them due to being too close or something like that...
Georgiahiker1784
02-05-2019, 10:44
I agree it’s not the bears fault and I know bears are scavengers but I did not know they would eat dead animals “humans”. Is this natural they eat dead animals?
MuddyWaters
02-05-2019, 11:07
I agree it’s not the bears fault and I know bears are scavengers but I did not know they would eat dead animals “humans”. Is this natural they eat dead animals?
Bears are omnivores. Yes, bears will feed on carrion. And garbage. Bears arent aggressive predators. They rely on natural killed carrion for food. Especially winter kills in spring
I eat dead animals too. And i like em that way.
illabelle
02-05-2019, 12:54
Allow me to use this as a segue to introduce the famous Cocaine Bear a.k.a. Pablo Escobear:
https://kyforky.com/blogs/journal/cocaine-bear
Wow! a little long, but fascinating story!
Click it. Read it.
Great, now some bear is out there tweeking!
Bears are omnivores. Yes, bears will feed on carrion. And garbage. Bears arent aggressive predators. They rely on natural killed carrion for food. Especially winter kills in spring
I eat dead animals too. And i like em that way.
ROTFL. he he he.
Bears can surely get aggressive Black, brown, Panda, Polar, sloth, and sun especially if you're a bee or termite protecting the hive or mound. I've seen them hunting rodents digging up ground like excavators working on Boston's Big Dig. I've seen them hunting elk and whitetail fawns very aggressively and methodically. Can be quite territorial.
Rain Man
02-05-2019, 23:29
Is this natural they eat dead animals?
I understand that the hired hunters & rangers who kill wild boar (a destructive invasive species) in the Park leave them for bears, etc. to eat.
I understand that the hired hunters & rangers who kill wild boar (a destructive invasive species) in the Park leave them for bears, etc. to eat.
That is true.....
as them hunters ain't dragging a heavy dead pig out....
rmitchell
02-05-2019, 23:59
I've been told that if a horse breaks a leg in the backcountry it is put down then blown up with dynamite.
Sarcasm the elf
02-06-2019, 00:04
I've been told that if a horse breaks a leg in the backcountry it is put down then blown up with dynamite.
“You know, I’d pay ten bucks to see that.”- Jeff Foxworthy
HooKooDooKu
02-06-2019, 00:04
That is true.....
as them hunters ain't dragging a heavy dead pig out....
Yeah, I was going to say...
They ain't intentionally trying to feed the bears, but there's nothing else they can really do with the carcass.
I read an article about these hunters some years ago... I think the interviewer was somewhat appalled when they learned they just dump the carcass and even asked if the pigs couldn't be used to feed the homeless or something. The hunter pointed out not only the difficulty and expense of getting the carcass back to the front country, but also pointed out the meat likely wouldn't pass FDA inspections (or something along those lines).
rmitchell
02-06-2019, 09:00
It doesn't say it in what I posted above but the report states that drugs and syringes were found near the body...
and he had a history of using meth intravenously.....
Drug addiction and abuse is a huge problem in our society. I didn't realize that meth was still a problem, that people were using pain pills . But maybe that is a different set of users ?
If the poacher was using an i.v. that might better explain an accidental overdose. I don't image there is much quality control in illegal drugs. No telling what is in the mix.
There hasn't been as much in the news about meth lab busts. Occasionally there are unexplained fires in unoccupied buildings.
As relates to hiking, especially in National Forest lands I would be extremely cautious of abandoned campsites due to possible toxic materials.
I've been told that if a horse breaks a leg in the backcountry it is put down then blown up with dynamite.
I dont see the use of dynamite happening in the Park....
much too dangerous for the common use like this.....
the Park does use dynamite (or some other explosive) when they are doing trail work though...
it was used on alum cave for the rocks....
i have come across a few horse carcasses in the Park and they didn't look blown up to me....
one was basically the skeleton with a few scattered bones....
Drug addiction and abuse is a huge problem in our society. I didn't realize that meth was still a problem, that people were using pain pills . But maybe that is a different set of users ?
If the poacher was using an i.v. that might better explain an accidental overdose. I don't image there is much quality control in illegal drugs. No telling what is in the mix.
There hasn't been as much in the news about meth lab busts. Occasionally there are unexplained fires in unoccupied buildings.
As relates to hiking, especially in National Forest lands I would be extremely cautious of abandoned campsites due to possible toxic materials.
Meth is always around in Appalachia....
same with pain pain pills and heroin...
there are still a few labs being busted every now and then in East Tennessee but most meth is getting shipped in nowadays.....
same with the heroin and fentanyl....
and yes---that's the pisser about illegal drugs---not sure what it really contains....
gpburdelljr
02-06-2019, 15:50
That is true.....
as them hunters ain't dragging a heavy dead pig out....
I read where they often hunt feral pigs at night, and the bears will come to the sound of gunfire because they have learned it often means a free meal. The bears even follow the night hunters. I think I read it in one of the “Bear in the Back Seat” books about experiences of rangers with bears in the park.
I read where they often hunt feral pigs at night, and the bears will come to the sound of gunfire because they have learned it often means a free meal. The bears even follow the night hunters. I think I read it in one of the “Bear in the Back Seat” books about experiences of rangers with bears in the park.
they do hunt at night since pigs are somewhat noturnal....
they also hunt in the day since pigs are also out during the day...
i read that book book and can't recall that but then again, I read the book years ago and can't remember anything else about it...
gpburdelljr
02-06-2019, 19:09
I read where they often hunt feral pigs at night, and the bears will come to the sound of gunfire because they have learned it often means a free meal. The bears even follow the night hunters. I think I read it in one of the “Bear in the Back Seat” books about experiences of rangers with bears in the park.
they do hunt at night since pigs are somewhat noturnal....
they also hunt in the day since pigs are also out during the day...
i read that book book and can't recall that but then again, I read the book years ago and can't remember anything else about it...
I just did a search on my Kindle copy of “Bear In The Back Seat”, and the part about bears following hog hunters at night night looking for a free pork meal is in the chapter called “Bears In The Shadows”.